We were enjoying an Afro-Cuban rumba band on a rooftop in the Jesus-Maria quarter of Havana when our host surprised us by releasing a large cage of homing pigeons. I grabbed my camera to shoot images of the birds flying in front of the sinking sun and this one came in for a landing right in front of me -- a grand symbol of hope for our new Cuban friends.

On New Year's Eve, my wife and I hiked through the Amazon Rainforest in a village just outside of Leticia, Colombia. The family we were staying with were so proud of all the natural fruits to eat in the forest and were quick to point out the various species of animals all around us. As we were walking, the local man we were with spotted a tiny frog. We quickly snapped a photo while he held it in his hands. When we got home and looked through our pictures, we discovered the photo captured more than the tiny frog, it captured the hands of a hard working man and his love of his land and nature.